I put his name along cuz I rank him right there with Alonso. Nothing more than that, man.

I'm not slamming Kimi, I'm just saying going up against him isn't like going up against one of the top drivers or anything. Like, he's not such an immense talent that he'll wreck some young kid's spirit or something like nectar was getting at.

If anything, this season has showed Kimi is one of the top drivers, there is group of four top drivers Alonso,Hamiton,Vettel and Kimi.most of the paddock say so and this season they have said that only Alonso has been more impressive than Kimi. Kimi is also said to be one if not the biggest naturally talented driver ever in F1.

But no driver is a fraid of their team mate or shouldnt be, they are all human and beatable if they are afraid, they are in wrong job.

Do they want raw near front row speed and occasional DNF's, or do they want a consistent points finisher

It doesn't have to be an either/or scenario. Grosjean can be a consistent points finisher. Its not like he's forever doomed to DNF every 3rd race or something.

If anything, this season has showed Kimi is one of the top drivers, there is group of four top drivers Alonso,Hamiton,Vettel and Kimi.most of the paddock say so and this season they have said that only Alonso has been more impressive than Kimi. Kimi is also said to be one if not the biggest naturally talented driver ever in F1.

I think plenty of people omit Kimi from that group still, quite rightfully. Believe what you will, though. This isn't the place for it.

Well, you could´ve fooled me. Quote: "Having Kimi as a teammate isn't that big a hurdle for a decent driver. Its not like having Alonso or Lewis or anything. Kimi is very beatable."

Maybe I am misunderstanding your thoughts, but what I read was: "Kimi is very beatable" and "its not like having Alonso or Lewis or anything.", the only way to read that for me is that Alonso and Hamilton are unbeatable... unless you think Kimi is soooooo far away from Alonso and Lewis that even though FA and LH are beatable only just and only by best drivers, Kimi is struggling against almost anyone.

It doesn't have to be an either/or scenario. Grosjean can be a consistent points finisher. Its not like he's forever doomed to DNF every 3rd race or something.

I think plenty of people omit Kimi from that group still, quite rightfully. Believe what you will, though. This isn't the place for it.

Believe what you will, indeed. Anyway, this is Romain's thread, so to the point: for the long term benefit of Lotus F1 Team, should they renew with him next year? I think when they signed him this year, apart from the money side, they are also looking for a future champion if /when they produce a winning car, like future Vettle. So does Romain look like that to me? Again, mentality; i may sound crazy, but i think Malmanardo has a better chance than him. Grojean to me a bystander's eye doesn't look quite so sure of himself and lacks a kind of settled heart. So if there is any slim chance that Lotus and Malmanardo could get together, might not be so bad an idea. Yes Malmanardo messed up almost quite as often as Grojean this year, but didn't get himself a race ban. There is a difference here. Sometimes call it luck, or fate, whatever you will, these seemingly tiny difference part ways. But we'll see how things go pretty soon in coming weeks.

While I would be interested in seeing him get another year to iron out (if he would ever get around to it) his mistakes, I would not be surprised it he just didn't get renewed outright. There comes a point that banking on future potential while it eats at the present becomes a poor decision.

I'm a huge fan of Kimi, but damn enough is enough. Absolutely nothing even remotely negative can be said about Kimi without the (absurdly) large crowd of Kimi defence force members starting to shout about Kimi's extraordinary talent and 'legendary' status as a remote yet lovable mystery man. I guess I don't like the praise because I'm a Finn as well. We are weird.

I´d pay some bucks to see a certain´s guy face after the last handfull of laps of the Abu Dhabi GP It must have hurted BIG time.

Back on topic, I think Romain needs something really special on one of these two last GPs. I think he´s closer to be kicked than to be retained after reading all the "we´ll see" stuff about him when team representatives were asked.

So, if the team decide NOT to retain Romain, who is available?
No one is jumping ship from Red Bull, McLaren or Ferrari and Michael is not moving over from Mercedes, opting to retire.
Kamui from Sauber, Heikki from Caterham, Timo from Marussia, Pastor or Valeri from Williams, Paul from Force India or Jaime and Sebastien from the Toro Rosso wilderness ?
Any best guesses?
Or are they just leaving it late to keep Romain on his best behaviour for the last 2 races?

Lotus need someone who is the polar opposite of Romain. They do not have the luxury of throwing away money for 27 year old crash kids who don't score points. Points in WCC are worth massive amounts of MONEY, and money is the biggest difference between Lotus and the top 3 teams. They need someone who dependably finishes races and scores points without a lot of fuss. They already have a top driver to gun for WDC with. It's a DAMN SHAME they are 4th in the WCC with the results their other driver has gotten this season.

I'll be very surprised if they don't keep him.. despite all the incidents and the ban he still has a respectable points tally, and I'd argue that it would be quite easy for him to improve on that next season.

There isn't a driver available that would be a clear improvement either.

Lotus need someone who is the polar opposite of Romain. They do not have the luxury of throwing away money for 27 year old crash kids who don't score points. Points in WCC are worth massive amounts of MONEY, and money is the biggest difference between Lotus and the top 3 teams. They need someone who dependably finishes races and scores points without a lot of fuss. They already have a top driver to gun for WDC with. It's a DAMN SHAME they are 4th in the WCC with the results their other driver has gotten this season.

I am of the same view regarding Grosjean wasting close to $10 million + Lotus pride of finishing 3rd because of some awful race craft and team awareness. And thats not even taking into account the damage BILLS.

All of which amounts to Lotus having less FUNDS to use in development of the 2013 car. And in this way, Grosjean has already put Lotus in the backfoot as well as having an adverse affect on Kimi directly.

Spa was a very eventful crash for the season. If he hadn't caused the pileup:
1. Alonso would probably be still leading the WDC now.
2. Sauber would be ahead of Merc already in the WCC.
3. Kamui might have continued to drive for Sauber in 2013 if he had a podium in Spa (he would have had 2 podiums to Perez's 3).

I see lots of people focussing on his impact on Lotus and his own prospects, but he's had quite a bit of influence on other drivers and teams this season. Go Romain

Spa was a very eventful crash for the season. If he hadn't caused the pileup:1. Alonso would probably be still leading the WDC now. 2. Sauber would be ahead of Merc already in the WCC.3. Kamui might have continued to drive for Sauber in 2013 if he had a podium in Spa (he would have had 2 podiums to Perez's 3).

I see lots of people focussing on his impact on Lotus and his own prospects, but he's had quite a bit of influence on other drivers and teams this season. Go Romain

Drivers have whole season to make the diffrence. I don't think Kamui won't be hired just because of this one race

I'm just saying it isn't just about Lotus and Grosjean. He's had a significant impact on a number of other drivers and teams this season. He's managed to spread it around a bit so there isn't a monolithic entity whose fans can come on here and remind people, but it behooves us to remember that angle as well. There are other victims besides Lotus.

I personally think F1 would be better off without drivers who can hardly finish half the races without ruining other driver's seasons. But apparently it's going to be Lotus's call alone on whether or not he drives next season.

I personally think F1 would be better off without drivers who can hardly finish half the races without ruining other driver's seasons. But apparently it's going to be Lotus's call alone on whether or not he drives next season.

Thats racing. He's made mistakes but he's had good speed and been quick at times, some incidents have been blown out of all proportion and i think he deserves a second season. If he keeps getting involved in such things next season then fine, he would of had a fair chance and not taken it. Right now in the limited testing era you have to give drivers more time than before. Hamilton and Kovalainen did the equivalent of about 23 grand prix's in pre-season testing before 2007, Grosjean did about 6 GPs worth before this season. You might not think its relevant to driving incidents but its experience, that all adds up.

But I trust Lotus to make the right decision given the information available now. If he's signed for next season, great I'll support him to bring home points for Lotus. If not, I will not be mourning much either.

As a Kobayashi fan, I'm disappointed, but I do believe that Grosjean has shown enough pace in between errors to justify another season. Hopefully he will be a more consistent performer now that he has a full year's worth of experience to draw upon.

As a Kobayashi fan, I'm disappointed, but I do believe that Grosjean has shown enough pace in between errors to justify another season. Hopefully he will be a more consistent performer now that he has a full year's worth of experience to draw upon.

I agree totally. The thing with Grosjean is that he was faster before summer break/ban. After summer break his best finish was 7th (maybe 6th if not the team order). I don't know what caused that, but I do hope he has the mental toughness to drive with/against Kimi. Before summer break he was FAST (although Kimi was rusty).

I'm going to reserve judgment, we'll see if he can get through the fisrt handful of races without wiping someone out, there's little doubt he's quick, but thats of little value to Lotus as a team if he continues to throw away points needlessly.

If petrov got a chance from them, he should too. I know, he likes to wipe out half the field sometimes, but he is very quick, and they put a lot of effort into this guy. Hope he delivers this time for a change.

I agree totally. The thing with Grosjean is that he was faster before summer break/ban. After summer break his best finish was 7th (maybe 6th if not the team order). I don't know what caused that, but I do hope he has the mental toughness to drive with/against Kimi. Before summer break he was FAST (although Kimi was rusty).

The coverage of the incidents he was involved in obviously hit his confidence. Recall him driving deliberately off track to avoid an incident that hadn't even occurred yet on lap one in Korea. He was at his best whilst happy-go-jolly and a new contract with a RoC title in his pocket will do nicely.

Romain better maximise this third chance he's receiving. I think he's super quick and can win races, but he needs to show evidence that he has learnt from his mistakes. If not then career over, when he could easily be at a top team with his speed.

Romain is seriously quick and has shown glimpses of being a big talent. He's made mistakes, yes, but it is possible to make a fast driver consistent, it is not possible to make a consistent driver fast, however.

If Petrov deserved a second season at Lotus/Renault then Romain more than deserves another chance, not that he doesn't anyway.

A big talent does not cause upwards of 8 crashes, thats almost half the season he has crashed into someone/by himself. Thats the sign of a moron who has no place in F1, let alone a decent team. Oh lotus, lotus

Here´s an interesting video, making me even more baffled at why they re signed this moving demolition derby of a guy: